


I think I wanna marry you

by Mooresomore



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Boys In Love, Fight (but then they make up), M/M, Marriage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-14
Updated: 2018-06-14
Packaged: 2019-05-23 04:09:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,112
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14926871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mooresomore/pseuds/Mooresomore
Summary: He rested his head against the cool glass; in less than three hours, he and Chase would be up at that altar, in front of their family and friends, promising to spend forever together, like they had joked about when they first met all those years ago in California. But now, it was real.This was a WIP I've had since July 2017...found it today and decided to post it





	I think I wanna marry you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cathedralhearts](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cathedralhearts/gifts).



> If you know/are anyone in this fic, turn back now. Please. Completely made up!! Unbeat'd, so I am solely responsible for any mistakes.
> 
> This is FICTION. I don’t own anybody, and I make no money off of this. I am not in any way implying said characters’ sexual identities. All knowledge of these people are from public information. All thoughts are my own.

Eric made his way over to the window; his eyes found their way down to where the people were frantically making sure the chairs were in line and everything was in the right place.

He rested his head against the cool glass; in less than three hours, he and Chase would be up at that altar, in front of their family and friends, promising to spend forever together, like they had joked about when they first met all those years ago in California. But now, it was real.

Eric nervously spun the metal band that had been on his hand since the day Chase had proposed. How Chase wanted to be with someone like him was still a mystery to Eric, but every time he asked Chase, Chase just always said, “Who wouldn’t? You’re smart, funny, and one heck of a guy.” Eric always laughed, but deep down, he still wondered if Chase really felt that way, or if he was just saying it because he didn’t want to deal with Eric’s insecurity issues.

A loud crash from the next room over startled Eric; he hit his head against the window. Rubbing it, he pulled back and then made his way to the door. “Everything ok?”

“Fine!” came the muffled reply. “Don’t come out.”

“Chase? Are you ok?”

“Yeah. No. Maybe. Hell, I don’t know.” Chase sounded defeated, and  _ shit _ .

Eric flung the door open so hard it slammed against the wall. Both he and Chase winced, and then Eric was tugging Chase up by the neck of his shirt and pulling him into the room.

Eric shut the door (gently this time), and then said, “What’s going on?”

“You know it’s bad luck for the bride and groom to see each other before the wedding?” Chase tried for humor, but it fell flat. Eric knew they were in big trouble.

“Chase.” Eric said, backing them up against the bed, and pushing Chase down into a sitting position. “What’s the matter? The last time I saw you this sad was when… Oh god, did…”

“No, everything’s fine.” Chase said. His eyes were shifting everywhere but Eric, and Chase’s hand was fiddling with his own ring.

“What is it then?” Eric asked gently; he knew when to push Chase and when to hold back.

“I can’t. I don’t.” Chase twirled the ring. “I can’t do the wedding. I’m sorry.”

Eric felt like he’d been punched in the gut. “What?”

“I can’t marry you.” Chase said again, avoiding Eric’s eyes.

“Nice of you to tell me now.” Eric’s anger came on fast, like a volcano blowing its top. “After we spent four months and a hell of a lot of time on it.”

“I thought I could.” Chase said, voice small. “But I…”

“You know what, I don’t want to hear excuses. I just thought you’d have been a better person and not let it get this far.”

“Wait. What?” Chase stopped, looking up. “You...”

“Well, it’s obvious you’re breaking up with me. Hell of a time man. Hope it was fun.” Eric said, taking off the ring and putting it in Chase’s hand.

“Eric, wait.” Chase grabbed Eric’s wrist, stopping Eric dead in his tracks. “It’s not that I don’t want to marry you--it’s…”

“I’m not good enough?”

“Dammit, will you let me finish?” Chase said, exasperated. Eric paused and looked at Chase. “I want to marry you, but I can’t do it in front of all these people.”

Eric thought for a minute. Then his eyes blazed with anger, and  _ damn it _ , this wasn’t what Chase thought the reaction was going to be. “Oh, so you just want me to be the ‘dirty little secret’ then? Well, fuck you.”

Chase looked at Eric. “No.  _ No. _ ”

Eric turned to leave; Chase tried again to hold him back, so he can just explain it’s too many people and he has a fear of messing it up and ruining things, but Eric’s not having it this time.

“Chase. Let me go.” Eric said. Chase reluctantly did, wincing as Eric said, “I’ll call you on Monday and arrange a time to come get my things.”

_ Well shit. _

Chase quickly found his mom, who along with Eric’s mom, got everything taken care of in a quick manner.

Three hours later, Chase is sitting alone at the altar, getting drunk off the stupid beer Eric had insisted they had, and he’s trying to think of a way to say things so that Eric understands them. When that doesn’t work, he finds the bottle of tequila and ends up passed out behind the pulpit.

Eric had gone for a run to clear his head after everything; he had always had the fear Chase was going to break up with him; he just thought that Chase wasn’t the dick to do it on the wedding day, especially when Chase had really seemed excited to help Eric plan it all out.

He told his parents he was going to crash in the honeymoon suite that was supposed to be his and Chase’s, and to not let anyone disturb him. He grabbed a bottle of Patron from the alcohol stash at the open bar and locked himself in the room. Between that and all the champagne, he was definitely a little more than tipsy when he laid down on the bed. Once the tears came, they didn’t stop; Eric cried until he thought he couldn’t cry anymore and then finally went to sleep. This wasn’t the first time he’d cried over Chase, but it was going to be the last.

In the morning when Eric woke up, it took him a few minutes to remember everything that had happened. Once he did, he made a beeline for the bathroom.

After puking his guts out, Eric found some aspirin and water and crawled back under the covers. He texted his parents to let them know he was still alive.

There was a text from Chase; Eric ignored it. He was too hungover to deal with it right now, and he was still mad at Chase. They’d just end up getting in another fight and both saying (more) things that they’d regret.

Eric was snugly entombed in the covers when his phone rang. It was Chase’s ringtone, so Eric ignored it. But then it kept going and going; every time Eric didn’t answer, Chase just immediately called back. Finally, Eric picked up the phone.

“What?” he grumbled.

“I’m sorry.” Chase said.

“We’ve been over this.” Eric sighed. “I’m too hungover. So are you. We talk on Monday.” With that, Eric hung up and undid the battery. He knew it was an extreme measure, but he just wanted to sleep this hangover off, dammit.

When the pounding on the door began, Eric ignored it at first. As it got louder and more insistent, he groaned. Who wanted to bother him now?

Finally, Eric got up, and against his brain’s protests, answered the door.

There stood Chase, looking just as bad as Eric felt. Chase’s hair was wild, he had dark circles under his eyes, and well, he just looked like shit. Eric was sure he didn’t look much better.

“Can, I, uh, come in?” Chase asked. “I get it if you say no. I just, I needed to see you and talk to you.”

“Fine.” Eric said. He wasn’t going to get to sleep anyway; he was wide awake now. “Come in.” he said, stepping aside.

“You can get back under the blankets if you want.” Chase said. He was doing his best not to look at Eric, but he knew he was failing. “This won’t take long. I know you said we needed space, but I have to tell you why I said no.”

Eric groaned.  _ This again _ ? “You don’t have to explain. I get it.”

“But you don’t.” Chase said. “I’m scared I’m going to mess up and ruin things. It’s not you at all. It’s me.”

“What?” Eric asked.

“I’m afraid I’m going to mess up the vows, or do something stupid. Then everybody will make fun of it, and only remember that.” Chases said. “My sister told me I was going to, and I don’t want to prove her right.”

“Wait. Let me get this straight.” Eric said. “You don’t want a large crowd in case you happen to mess up? But you still want to marry me?”

“Right.” Chase said. “And, god yes! That’s all I’ve ever wanted. You have no idea.”

Eric’s head was spinning, and not from all the alcohol. “So, when I accused you…Oh my god, sorry!”

“It’s fine. You wouldn’t let me explain, and I wasn’t going to push the issue.”

“So, you still want to marry me?”

“Yes. If you do.”

“I do!” Eric said. “I think we need to sleep off these hangovers and talk when we’re sober though.”

“That sounds like a great idea.” Chase said. He looked toward the bed. “Can I?”

“Sure.” Eric made room, and then added, “As long as your cold feet don’t touch mine.”

“Oh, like this?” Chase asked, reaching a foot out to touch Eric’s leg. Eric yelped and smacked Chase. “Kidding. I’ll behave. Promise.”

“Good. Or you’re banished.”

“Won’t happen again.” Chase said seriously.

Eric snapped the battery back into his phone, and they both fell asleep, at a slightly less awkward place than they were at 24 hours ago.

*

The next time Eric woke up, he was wrapped around Chase, and things felt a lot more like normal.

Eric’s phone ringing startled them both; Eric blindly reached for it and picked it up. “Lo?” He listened for a moment, then handed the phone to Chase. “It’s for you.”

“Huh?”

“It’s for you.” Eric said, handing Chase the phone.

“Hello?” Chase answered. “Oh, hi mom. Yeah, I’m fine. I’m, uh, in Eric’s room. Ma!” Chase laughed. “No, we’re talking. Things are ok. Love you too.” Chase handed Eric the phone. “She wants to talk to you.”

“Hi Mrs. De Leo, uh, ma’am.” Eric said. “Yes ma’am, I will. Thank you.” He hung up and shifted around, cracking and stretching out.

“So, I should, uh go.” Chase said.

“Yeah.” Eric sighed.

“We’ll talk on Monday. Promise.” Chase said.

“Ok.” Eric said. He wasn’t sure where they stood at the moment, so he leaned in and gave Chase a “bro” hug. “See you then.”

Chase walked out and Eric felt a lot better than he had when the morning started. Things were on the right path. Eric knew they had a long way to go, but he knew if anyone could make it, it would be him and Chase.

Eric made it to family dinner that night; Chase started sending Eric stupid texts during the meal. Eric grinned and tried to reply, only to have his mom take his phone away.

“Ma!”

“No phones at the table.” She said, and Eric sighed. “I know you two are talking again sweetie, but it can wait until you’ve got your food finished.

“Fine.”

After dinner, Eric immediately grabbed his phone and retreated to his room; he sent Chase a text back.

They spent the night texting, and Eric felt like they were starting over. (That’s what they had done when they’d first started dating and were in separate places). Eric smiled. Things were going to be ok.

They checked out of the motel and headed back to California. When Eric left his room, there was a package in front of the door, with Chase’s handwriting on the front.  _ Open when you get on the plane. _ Eric was a little intrigued, but waited until the plane was in the air before tearing open the letter.

_ Eric, I have your ring. I’m going to keep it for now. I’m going to make you see how much you mean to me. I’m going to treat you right. I promise. See you Monday. Chase. _

Eric grinned. He couldn’t wait to get home and finally get things back to where they had been. Chase was going to have to work for it though.

Besides, now Eric could pull out the memory book he’d made of all of their best moments from over the years.

*

“Just go see him you lovesick loser.” Ty said when they landed; Eric wanted to, but knew he needed to wait until Monday. He did send a text to let Chase know he’d landed safely. He got a smiley cat emoji and a “me too” back.

Of course, the best laid plans go awry, and they had to push the ‘meeting’ back to Monday afternoon. It wasn’t too bad, and Chase looked in awe as Eric pulled out the book. “Wow. You’ve kept this since the day we met? That’s cool.”

“Yeah.” Eric opened it up. “There’s the first day we met- mom snapped that pic. And the first Valentine’s card you gave me.” Eric grinned.

The memories came pouring out as each page was turned; by the end, they were both laughing so hard they were crying.

“I know I fucked up.” Chase said, serious, “But will you go out with me again? So I can do everything right?”

“I guess I can give you a try.” Eric teased. “Yeah, that would be nice. Go back and start over.”

“Deal.” Chase said. “Can I take you out to dinner?”

“Now?” Eric asked. “I’m not dressed.”

“It’s not fancy.” Chase promised.

“Alright.” Eric replied. “It better not be McDonald’s.” he laughed.

“Ah, come on, I’m classier than that.” Chase laughed. “Sushi ok?”

“Sounds good.” They went out, and then Chase said, “You can, uh, spend the night it you want.”

“I’ll crash on the couch if that’s ok?”

“Ok.” Chase answered.

Eric fell asleep, and the next thing he knew, he was being awakened by another person in the room. “Dels, come on! The concert starts in 2 hours. We gotta get going.”

_ Concert? What the hell?  _ Eric woke up enough to ask. “Who are you?”

“Nic Petan. Chase’s friend. And you are?”

“Eric. The, uh, ( _ ex-fiancé?)  _ boyfriend.”

“Oh. Chase didn’t tell me he was dating anyone.”

“Oh, he didn’t? Well, we’ve been together four years now.” Eric said, pissed off now. Sure it was Chase’s call, but 4 years seemed like something you’d tell your friends. Eric had told all of his friends.

Nic stared. “I should, uh,” he said as Chase came downstairs.

“Nic!” Chase’s eyes got wide. “Um, I see you met Eric?”

“Yeah.” Eric and Nic both said, and  _ oh shit. _

“Have fun.” Eric said. “I’m going home. Since apparently you have plans and don’t…” he couldn’t finish the rest of his sentence. He was too upset and mad right now. After this talk he and Chase had just had, and now this? It was just too much.

“Eric, wait.” Chase tried, but it was too late. Eric was already gone. Chase sighed.

“You ready?” Nic asked.

“Yeah.” Chase said. “What did you tell him anyway?”

“That we were friends, and that you’d never told me you were dating.”

Everything clicked into place.  _ Well shit. _ “You were joking right?” The look on Nic’s face said it all.

“I tried!” Nic protested. “He just…you came down too soon.”

“Fuck!” Chase scrubbed a hand across his face. This wasn’t going to go well when he got home.

*

Eric sat in his house, stewing in his anger; he finally gave up and went running. He ran until he felt like his legs were going to give out. After a hot shower, he got on Instagram. He searched for Nic and decided to add him; he was Chase’s friend after all (albeit one Eric had never heard of before).

This opened up the Instagram stories, and Eric was immediately drawn to Chase’s and Nic’s.

Eric watched them and felt the anger bubble back up. Sure, Chase was able to have his own friend, but they shouldn’t be standing that close to one another. The other one showed Chase’s dog on both Chase’s and Nic’s feeds, and Eric hadn’t seen the dog all day- or since last night, which could only mean… Eric knew he was probably being irrational, but he wasn’t sure what to think right now- a ‘friend’ he didn’t know, and the same pics from Chase’s bedroom could only mean one thing in Eric’s mind. His insecurity was back in full force and all that reassuring that Chase had done had just been negated.

Eric decided it was time to log off of the social media, and go forget about stuff. He was already hurting, so more running was out of the question (besides, Coach would have his head if he overdid his summer workout); Eric tried playing Call of Duty, but even killing people wasn’t helping, so he did the only other thing he could think of- go to the bar. If Chase was going to have secrets, well Eric could play that game.

Eric had a good buzz going on by his third drink. When Chase’s number popped up, Eric pressed ‘ignore’ and ordered another round.

By about the sixth round, Eric stopped even attempting to look at his phone.

He knew his head (and stomach) were going to hate him in the morning, but he kept going. When the room started to spin (and Eric had lost count of the drinks), he knew it was time to go home. He called a cab and fell into bed.

*

The next morning, he was woken up to someone throwing open the blankets. “Ugh!”

“Rise and shine!” Chase said.  _ Wait. How did I get here? _ As Eric looked around, he realized he’d somehow made it to Chase’s place and  _ oh no _ .

“Go away!” Eric said, trying to burrow back under the covers, only to have Chase yank them all over. “Chase. Quit being a dick!”

“Not my fault you decided to go get stupidly drunk.” Chase said. “You’re lucky I went by your house. You were outside, and you didn’t have your keys. Well, they were in your pocket.”

“Uh.” Eric said, wincing as he opened his eyes.

“Pain meds and Gatorade are on the table. Breakfast is about ready.” Chase said, leaving the room.

Eric managed to make it down to the kitchen without too many incidents; when he saw Nic in the kitchen, he spun around to leave, only to have Chase steer him back in to the table. “No. We’re talking.”

“Uh?” Eric asked.

“Nic.” Chase said. “Please tell Eric what you  _ should _ have told him last night.”

“Uh, I know about you guys. I was joking. Chase came down before I could explain.”

“And I thought I’d introduced you before.” Chase said. “Sorry.”

“You’re all he talks about.” Nic said. “Please fix it. He was horrible last night.”

“No I wasn’t.” Chase protested.

“Yes. You. Were.”

“No.” Chase said again.

“Chase, you were like a stick in the mud. You were so mopey.”

“Was not.”

“Was too.”

“Ugh!” Eric groaned. “Would you two knock it off? You’re making my head hurt.”

Chase and Nic laughed. “Sorry.”

“Seriously, Chase? You’re an idiot.” Eric said. “And you,” he said, pointing to Nic, “I don’t know about you yet.”

“I can change that.” Nic said. Both Chase and Eric looked at Nic. “I was, I mean, you can find out more about me, ask questions.” Nic said. “Fair is fair. I don’t really know you either Eric- except what Chase had told me about you, which is all good, I swear.”

“Take me out to coffee, and you have a deal.” Eric said. Nic grinned.

“Hey, I wanna go.” Chase said.

“No one invited you.” Nic and Eric said in unison, chuckling as Chase pouted.

“Payback’s a bitch, huh?” Eric asked, letting the anger he’d been keep in seep out a little.

“Sorry.” Chase said, and no fair, not the puppy dog eyes. Eric always fell for those.

“I’ll have him back by dark.” Nic said. “Come on, I gotta tell you about that time in Portland when…”

“You better not!” Chase said, but he was laughing.

As he sat in Starbucks talking to Nic, Eric felt a little bit better (and more guilty about the ‘conclusions’ he’d come to about him last night- he knew Nic wouldn’t do anything- he and Chase had been friends since forever, and apparently he was the one who had encouraged Chase to make the move to ask Eric out). When they got to talking about hockey, Nic smiled sadly. “I used to play until I got a career-ending injury. Now I just watch the games.”

“That sucks. I’m sorry.” Eric said, finishing his coffee.

“Eh, it is what it is.” Nic said. “But Chases is really a good guy. Even if he is a dork sometimes.”

“Yeah.” Eric said.

“He called me on Friday, after your guys incident.” Nic said.

Eric tensed.  _ Really?!  _ “Oh?”

“I never heard him sound so broken. He wanted to go talk to you so bad, and he didn’t know what to do.”

“Well, I wasn’t the most open person that day.” Eric admitted. “I didn’t really let him talk.”

“I told him to give you some space and that everything was going to work out eventually. He really loves you. I’ve never seen him act like this around anyone else. Ever.”

Eric wasn’t sure what to say. “Thanks. I love him too.” Eric said, and he meant it. Despite everything they’d been through the last few days, he’d never stopped loving Chase.

“Come on, let’s get you home before Chase thinks I’ve kidnapped you.” Nic laughed.

Eric chuckled. “I got an idea.”

“Oh?”

“Why don’t we pretend we made up our own secret language.”

“Uh?”

“Like, you say potato and I start…” Eric stopped. “Nah, he’d just think I’m crazy.” Eric laughed. “Oh, we could…nah, that wouldn’t work either.”

“How about we just be ourselves?” Nic suggested.

“Fine. I just wanted him to know how I felt last night.” Eric said, frowning.

“I think he does.” Nic said. “He felt bad.  _ I _ felt bad too- I had made these plans Friday night, and he said you two were taking a break, so it was supposed to be a boy’s night out.”

“It’s ok.” Eric said. “I’m just really insecure.” And ok, where did that come from? Eric never talked about that with anybody. “I guess I just can’t see what he sees in me.”

“I think he sees a great guy who cares about him Who loves him even with his faults. I think he sees someone he wishes he could be.”

“Thanks.” Eric said. “Come on, let’s go.”

“Yeah.” Nic said. “I’m really glad I got to meet you. Sorry about last night.”

“It’s cool. Don’t let it happen again.”

“I won’t.” Nic said as their phones dinged with a text from Chase.

“Come on, let’s go home. I think our boy misses us.” Eric said. And, well, that was one way to put things. “I mean...”

“I got ya.” Nic said. “I had fun today.”

“Me too. We should do this again if you’re up here again sometime.”

“Sure.” Nic said. They drove back to Chase’s place in a comfortable silence, and then Chase was practically tackling them when they walked through the door.

“Oh good. I thought you two had killed each other. Or that Nic had kidnapped you Eric to keep for himself.”

“Told ya.” Nic laughed. Eric joined in.

“Yes you did.”

“What?”

“Nic told me you’d think he’d kidnapped me.” Eric said between wheezes of laughter.

“What can I say? I know him too well.” Nic laughed.

“You do.” Chase agreed. “I take it everything went well?”

“Yeah.” Nic and Eric said.

“Good.” Chase said. “I made dinner while you guys were gone, as a ‘sorry I screwed up’ deal.”

“Thanks.” They ate in a companionable silence, and when Nic said he was leaving in the morning, Chase said, “I’ll take you to the airport.”

“I can get a cab.”

“Nic, we’ll take you to the airport.” Eric said.

“Ok.” Nic said. He went down to the guest bedroom to pack, and Chase said, “You can stay the night if you want. You can sleep in my room.”

“I’ll stay, but I’m gonna sleep on the couch.” Eric said. “We still got a lot to work on, and I can’t. Not with Nic being in the house.”

“Fair enough.” Chase said. “I’m really sorry.”

“I’ll forgive you- this time.” Eric said, “but if it happens again, I’ll break your neck.”

“Noted.”

“Night Chase.”

“Good night Eric.”

In the morning, Eric was the first one up, making them all coffee.

They took Nic to the airport, and after they watched him go to security, Chase said, “Can we go home? I really need to talk to you.”

“Yeah. Sure.” Eric said. “Come on.”

There was something “off” on the drove home; Eric couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he knew he would find out soon enough, when he and Chase got home, and Chase got out what he needed to say.

Chase was practically bouncing on the couch after they’d gotten home; Eric teased him about being a new pet to the family as he sat down. Chase rolled to his side and put his head in Eric’s lap, nudging his head into Eric’s hand. Eric laughed and ran a hand through Chase’s hair, then made Chase sit up.

“You told me you really needed to tell me something.” Eric said. “Well, I’m all ears. What’s on your mind?”

The bouncing stopped, and Chase turned serious. “So, I was thinking. About us.”

“And?”

“I think.” Chase paused. “I think we should just elope. You know, when- or if- we decide to finally get married. Just you, me, the judge, and the witnesses.”

Eric paused, mulling over the idea. “You don’t want our families there?” he finally settled on.

“No.” Chase said. “I was thinking, we could always have a ‘family’ wedding later, when it doesn’t really matter.”

“If it’s what you want.” Eric said.

“No, this is a decision we make as a team.” Chase said. “I know you’ve always thought of having a big wedding, but I don’t know if I can do that. I want to, but… well, that’s my insecurity. There. See? I have them too. It’s not just you.”

Eric wasn’t sure what to say, so he settled on, “Ok, yeah. We could a ‘vow renewal’ and do the whole shindig thing. I can make that compromise.”

“Cool.” Chase beamed. “So, since I screwed up royally, can I try to make amends by taking you out to a fancy dinner? Wil that get me back on your good side?” he laughed.

“We’ll see. And yeah, you did, but we all do it sometimes. That’s life.” Eric said. “Besides, not cooking tonight sounds like a good idea to me.”

“Perfect. Cause I already made the reservations.” Chase smiled.

“Of course you did. Would I have expected anything less?” Eric chuckled. “I better go shower and get ready.”

“Your clothes are still in the guest room.” Chase said as Eric made his way down the hall; Eric always had a change of spare clothes (both casual and professional) at Chase’s, since they hadn’t ever really talked about living together yet (they split time between their two houses). They had been looking into getting a place together, but then Chase had proposed, and all their time and effort went into planning the wedding.

“Thanks!” Eric hollered; Chase waited until he heard the shower start up. “Hey, it’s me. Operation ‘Woo’ is ago. Yep, just like we talked about. Thanks. I owe you. Done.” He hung up, and then went to his own room to figure out what to wear.

Eric realized where they were going as soon as Chase turned onto the highway. “You’re taking me to Vinny’s? I love that place.”

“I know.” Chase said. “That’s why I picked it. It’s all about you tonight.”

Eric couldn’t help but read into the words. “There’s more?”

“Quite possibly.” Chase smirked. “Fine, yes. But dinner first.”

Eric wondered what Chase was up to, but he trusted Chase. It wasn’t going to be easy, but Eric knew Chase was going to win him back.

Chase had reserved them a table in the back, away from everyone else; Eric was pretty grateful; he really didn’t want to be bothered by all the autograph requests (more for Chase than for him).

The waiter brought the menus. Once he walked away, Chase folded his menu. “You pick something for me.”

“I hear the chicken alfredo is pretty good.” Eric said.

“Done.” When the waiter came back, Chase ordered the chicken alfredo (which Eric had decided to get as well), as well as a bottle of wine.

As they ate, Chase said, “You know, I never really did this that much when we were dating the first time. I’m doing this more this time around.”

“But, we did.” Eric said.

“They were home dates.” Chase said. “Or motel room dates. This time, we’re going out more.”

“Ok.” Eric said. That would actually be nice, and help Eric work on controlling his insecurity issues. “And just how long is this ‘redating’ process going to take?”

Chase thought for a moment. “As long as it takes for you to see how much I love you.”

“Fair enough.” Eric said, while in his head thinking  _ if it’s anything like last time, it’s going to be forever. _

Once they were finished, Chase stood up, coming to take Eric’s hand. “Come on, let’s go. It’s time for the next part of the night.”

Eric allowed the door to be held open for him, and Chase to be a gentleman and open the car door; he stared over as Chase hit a couple of buttons on the GPS, and a route was popping up on the screen.

“In .2 miles, turn right.” The annoyingly high pitched voice said; Eric really needed to find the manual and change the voice.

Chase took the turn, and Eric snuck a glance. The miles until the next direction said 20. Where were they heading? What was Chase up to now?

Turns out, they were headed to another one of Eric’s favorite spots, Casa Villa. Eric grinned at Chase. “You up for a game of…”

“Yes, you goof. Why else do you think I brought you out here?” Chase laughed. “You’re going down.”

“I wouldn’t bet on it.” Eric said, making a beeline for the Skeeball machines.

Forty-five minutes later, it was clear that Eric was going to be the winner. Chase looked at his watch and said, “Time for stop #3.”

They cashed out their tickets (Chase getting an obnoxiously huge stuffed purple hippo; Eric settled for the more realistic looking giraffe), and they were off again.

This time, as soon as Chase started driving, Eric knew where they were heading.

“Of course.” He smiled. He and Chase had always talked about watching a sunset here, and it was the perfect time. “I thought you’d forgotten about that.”

“No.” Chase said. “I just never made time to do it.” He admitted. “So we’re doing it now.”

Eric and Chase laid out on the hood of the car and watched the sun sink out of the sky and behind the horizon; Chase snuck a kiss before telling Eric to get back in, that it was time to go home.

“Thanks. I had fun.” Eric said as the started home. “This was really nice.”

“You’re welcome. It was.” Chase grinned; the best surprise of the night was waiting for them at home. “We’ll do it again soon. Promise.”

“Can’t wait.”

When Eric walked into the house (wondering why Chase had insisted he go first), he felt all the air leave his lungs. “What? How? Who? When?” The words weren’t coming to him. He was in awe.

Somehow, Chase had turned the living room into something straight out of a romantic villa in Italy. There were roses everywhere, and white Christmas lights hung up (the main lights were off). Eric took a look down the hall and noticed the rose petals on the floor. “Sappy much?” he teased, remembering how Chase had said he was a romantic at heart.

“Yeah.” Chase said. “Sit down.” He motioned to the couch. “I had some help from Nic.” Chase admitted.

“But he flew…”

“Well, not really.” Chase laughed. “He went to the airport, caught a taxi back to the house, did this, and  _ then _ flew out.”

“He did a good job.” Eric said.

“Yeah.” There was a moment’s pause before Chase spoke again. “I promised you I was going to do it right this time, so we’re going back to the beginning. Eric Comrie, will you be my boyfriend?”

Eric chuckled. “Yes. Of course.”

“Good.” Chase smiled.

“Doesn’t mean I’m going to automatically put out though.” Eric grinned, watching Chase flush red.

“That’s… not… not what.” It was Chase’s turn to sputter.

“I know.” Eric said. “I just wanted to mess with you a bit.”

“Gee thanks.” Chase feigned hurt.

Eric closed the space between them on the couch and grabbed Chase’s face in his hands. Eric then gave Chase a kiss that had them both pulling apart, breathless. “There. Does that answer your question better?” Eric asked.

“Yeah.” Chase breathed.

Eric got up and started walking down the hallway, losing his suit jacket and tie as he went. “Well, are you coming or not?” he turned back to Chase, who quickly scrambled up off the couch and followed Eric to the bedroom.

Eric took his time getting his clothes off, making sure they were neatly folded and placed in the hamper; Chase had his own and haphazardly thrown into the hamper in a matter of seconds.

“No wonder you do more laundry than me.” Eric teased, lying back on the bed.

“Oh, shush.” Chase laughed, sitting down by Eric.

Suddenly, the nerves and awkwardness sat in and neither one knew what to do.

Finally, Chase spoke. “It’s your night. You can do what you want.”

Eric thought for a moment. “I want.” He paused. “I want you to take the lead.” He settled on.

Chase was about to protest, when Eric said, “I want to know what you like. You can learn what I like too.”

“Done.” Chase said. They’d only ever done this once before; they were both too focused on other things. Sure, they did the pictures and sexting, but to physically be in the same room hadn’t happened in a while.

“Um. Ok.” Chase said. He finally tipped Eric over backwards. “You’re like a freaking giraffe.” He teased as Eric sprawled out.

“Eh.” Eric laughed. “You’re a Shetland pony.” He jabbed back.

“Touché.” Chase laughed.

Chase leaned in for a kiss. With their bodies like this, he had a little easier position than he normally did when they were upright and Eric was like 4 inches taller than Chase.

“Hey.” Chase said when they broke apart; he couldn’t help but grin at seeing how red and bruised Eric’s lips were.

“Hi.” Eric grinned, leaning back in for another kiss.

Just then, a barking noise came from outside the door. Eric and Chase separated.

“I got him.” Chase said, grabbing the robe off the door. “Be right back. Sorry.”

“This is us more anyway, eh?” Eric laughed.

“Very true.” Chase agreed. “Come on CJ, let’s go.”

As Eric waited for Chase to come back, he started thinking about things- what they had been through, and how Chase was serious about making things right. Suddenly, Eric knew what he wanted and how to get it.

Eric heard the back door click close and Chase put the kibble in the bowl; when Chase opened the bedroom door, Eric made his move.

Chase barely had a chance to shut the door before Eric was pouncing on him and pinning Chase to the bed.

Chase pulled back, breath coming in short gasps. “O… ok?” he asked.

“I know.” Eric paused, catching his own breath. “What I want.”

“Which is?”

“I.” Eric paused. “I want to take it slow. Like, make out all night long.”

“We can do that.” Chase said.

“Cool.” Eric said, smiling.

“We’re taking it slow, member?” Chase said. “Baby steps.”

“Right.”

Chase laid down beside Eric and propped his head on his arm. “Should we go back to the introductions?” he smiled widely.

“Oh, stop.” Eric laughed as he rolled over and straddled Chase. “And here I was…” Eric wasn’t able to finish that statement as Chase leaned up and kissed him, and yeah, Eric was on board with that.

The kisses were slow and lazy at first, but Eric soon decided it was time to pick up the pace and change the location.

“Wh…” Chase started, only to stop and let out a sharp intake of breath as Eric’s lips attached themselves to Chase’s neck.

“Not ok?” Eric quickly pulled back.

“No.” Chase grabbed out for Eric, pulling him back in. “More than ok. Just… slow?”

“Well, I’m not.” Eric paused. “You know what, never mind.”

The insecurity was starting to creep back in.

Chase picked up on it immediately. “Oh no, none of that.” He said, rolling them over so he could be on the top. “We just gotta be careful. No bruises. Can’t scare the rookies yet.”

“Deal.” Eric said, and as Chase mouthed at Eric’s neck, Eric felt the tension bleed out of his system. This was what he needed. And judging from the intensity Chase was giving off, they  _ both _ needed.

Eric got to take his turn a few minutes later; he did leave a slight red mark on Chase’s left collarbone (on accident; he got a little overzealous), and he was just getting ready to go sleep on the couch when Chase said, “Stay with me?”

“Ok?” Eric asked. Since that night after the (not) wedding, they hadn’t done that.

“It doesn’t have to mean a thing if you don’t want it to.”

“And if I do?”

“Well, then I say it’s fine, and I’ve missed my lanky giraffe boyfriend.” Chase said.

Eric slid into the bed; Chase immediately rearranging them so Eric was the big spoon.

“You don’t know how much I missed this. How I never thought it was gonna happen again.” Chase whispered.

“I do. Now go to sleep.”

“Yes dear.” Chase snarked, laughing as Eric hit his arm. “Night.”

“Good night Chase.”

They both slept the best they had in a long time; it was like things were back on the right track.

Eric was usually the first one out of bed in the morning; today, when the sunlight hit his eyes and he found cold sheets, he got up, thinking he’d overslept and missed practice.

Turned out, it was only 8 AM, and they still had plenty of time. Eric could hear Chase in the living room, mumbling something to CJ. Eric decided a shower was in order.

When he came downstairs and went into the kitchen, he ran into the island as he took a look at Chase.

First, Chase was making breakfast (a rare thing; Chase had the skills of a caveman when it came to cooking- fire usually resulted), but the thing that really caught Eric’s eyes was the shirt that Chase was wearing. Sure, it was the team gear, but it had Eric’s name on the back. Did Chase just grab it by mistake, or was it on purpose? There was only one way to find out.

“Well, good morning Mr. Comrie.” Eric came up behind Chase, grabbing the coffee mug and grinning as Chase spluttered, turned pink, and then choked out a “Morning.”

As the coffee brewed, Eric looked at Chase. “So, accident? Or…”

“Um.” Chase said, shifting his eyes. “Accident. But then I didn’t want to change, and it smells like you, so…”

“Gotcha.” Eric said. “Looks good on ya.” The red color got darker on Chase’s cheeks.

“It doesn’t have to mean a thing.” Eric continued, repeating Chase’s words from the night before.

“I know.” Chase said. “But it does.” He came over with two plates. “I was thinking.”

“Oh no.” Eric chirped, laughing. “Kidding.” He added when Chase’s gaze firmly settled into a hard line. “Go on.”

“I was thinking.” Chase repeated. “We never… I know it’s way off, but.”

“Use your words.” Eric gently encouraged.

“I don’t want to change my name.” Chase blurted out in one fast breath. “And I don’t want you to change yours.”

“Ok.” Eric said. “Where is this coming from?”

“I was just… everyone says you should…”

“We’re not everyone.” Eric said. “We don’t have to do a damn thing we don’t want to. Besides, I’d still probably write Comrie even if I changed it, out of habit.”

“Me too.” Chase agreed. “You’re cool with no name changes?”

“Yeah.” Eric said. “I’m not opposed to you wandering around in my shirt though.” He winked.

“Deal.”

Eric made a mental note to get one of the custom tees made in his size with Chase’s name on the back- fair was fair. (He’d have to get Chase to wear it first, so it smelled like him.)

After breakfast and dishes, Chase said, “Come on, time to scare, I mean, teach the rookies.”

“Yeah.” Eric grinned.

Practice went well, and they only scared the rookies a tiny bit (but most of them had seen the story now, so it wasn’t a big surprise). When they got home, Chase told Eric to go take a shower and then they were going out to a movie.

“Ok.”

When Eric got to the car, Chase was on the phone. “Yeah, ma, I love you too. Of course. Tell the animals I said hi. Oh, Eric says hi too. Love ya. Gotta go!”

“She says hi.” Chases said, tossing Eric the keys.

“Um, you’re not driving? You always drive.”

“Wanted to let you drive.” Chase said. “Besides, I might have, um, forgot my license at the arena.”

“And you say I’m forgetful.” Eric laughed. “Wait a minute, you had it in your wallet when you got home. I saw it.”

“That’s my passport ID.” Chase said. “I swapped them at the arena, and just forgot to put the license back in.”

“If you wanted me to drive, you just had to say so.” Eric teased. “Or ask me. You didn’t have to go to the extreme.”

“Noted.” Chase said, knowing Eric had picked up on the ploy.

“Where are we headed? Which theater?”

“The one at the mall. It’s Monday. Schoolkids won’t be there.”

“Deal. No making out in there.”

“Aw!” Chase halfheartedly protested.

“I’m not getting banished from another theater, like we did at Lloyd Center.” Eric laughed.

“Fine.” Chase pouted.

“But we can totally hold hands.” Eric grinned. He looked over to Chase to find Chase beaming as well.

The movie was actually boring; Eric spent more time messing with Chase’s hand (and stopping Chase from moving his hand to places where they weren’t supposed to go); when they got home, Chase all but tackled Eric to the bed.

“I love you.” Chase said, trying to pull Eric’s shirt over his head and kiss him at the same time.

“Slow down turbo.” Eric chuckled. “I love you too.” He said, helping Chase get the shirt off.

“Can I?” Chase asked, looking at Eric’s jeans; Eric nodded in the affirmative, and then it was game on.

Tonight, Chase didn’t hold back; he left countless marks in places that would (mostly) be covered in the morning). He knew they weren’t quite ready for the full deal yet, so he instead grabbed the lube and slicked up his hand.

“What?” Eric barely managed to get out before Chase was grabbing onto Eric’s hand as well, then grabbing their dicks.

“Help me.” Chase said, voice low, and  _ oh _ .

Eric didn’t need to be told twice; together, he and Chase set a rhythm that worked the both of them, and it didn’t take long.

“Wow.” Eric fell back onto the bed, panting. “That was… wow.”

“Yeah.” Chase said, flopping over next to Eric. “And it doesn’t break the ‘no sex before marriage’ rule.”

“True. I guess. We still don’t say anything.”

“Done.” Chase wasn’t in the mood to debate what was and wasn’t considered sex right now. He just wanted to snuggle up with Eric and sleep.

“Let’s clean up.” Eric suggested. “We’ll both hate ourselves later if we don’t.”

Chase grumbled, but got up.

Once they were clean and in fresh boxers, Chase grabbed the remote and flipped on the TV.

Eric sprawled on the bed, head propped up on the headboard. Chase immediately filled the empty spaces, laughing as Eric’s hands and feet moved to box Chase in.

“You’re an octopus.” Chase giggled.

“You love it.” Eric ruffled Chase’s hair.

“Yep.”

“Now, shut up and bring up Bates Motel. I missed last week’s episode. Don’t spoil it for me.” Eric said.

Chase grinned, stabbing at the remote. “You’ll love it.”

Eric managed to miss the episode again; he fell asleep midway through (between the high and Chase’s body warmth beside him, Eric was done). He woke up to Chase poking him. “What?”

“Dinner’s ready.” Chase said. He was wearing sweatpants that hung low on his hips, and damn…

“Wait, you cooked twice in one day? Is there going to be a massive blizzard?” Eric teased.

“Oh, fuck off.” Chase said, tone light.

“What did you make?” Eric asked.

“Come downstairs and find out.” Chase said. “There’s even dessert. And wine.”

Eric got out of bed, stretching and cracking everything back into place. He may have only been 21, but some days, his body felt like it was 60.

“Put on a shirt!” Chase yelled down the hall. Eric laughed and grabbed the first one he found. It seemed a little tighter than he remembered, but he shrugged it off. He had put on some muscle this last summer.

Eric came downstairs to find the table nicely set and Chase fussing over lighting a candle.

“Let me help.” Eric said.

“Thanks.” Chase handed over the matches and then went back into the kitchen to grab the lasagna.

Eric got the candle (finally) lit; he had just sat down at the table when Chase came in.

The pan his the table with a little more force than Chase had intended it to when he dropped it. Eric stared at Chase. “Everything ok?”

“Uh, yeah.” Chase said.

“Why’d you drop the pan then?” Eric asked.

“Um.” Chase wasn’t sure how to respond at first; he decided to go for it. “I didn’t know you played for team USA.”

“What?” Eric asked, confused.

“Your shirt.” Chase said, “Well, my shirt technically.”

Eric looked down, and holy crap. “Well, that explains why I thought it was tighter than I remembered.” He laughed.

“Guess clothes sharing is just so ‘us’ now.” Chase laughed. “You look in it though.”

Eric laughed. “But I’m team Canada all the way. Sorry babe.”

“You’d never think about dual citizenship?”

“Nope.”

“Well, you’re missing out.” Chase said. “But dinner’s ready.”

“Thanks.” They ate in a comfortable silence. After starting the dishwasher, they played a game of Jeopardy. Eric finally say his Bates Motel episode, and they went to bed.

This pattern continued for about a month or so, until Chase decided it was time to ask Eric to (re)marry him.

He called in both of their families for a get together, and made his move.

“Eric, I know these last few months have been some of the craziest we have had in a long time, but we’ve made it through. There’s no one I would rather spend the rest of my life with. Will you marry me?”

“Of course.” Eric said.

They talked with their families about their wedding “plan” (the first one and then a family one later); their families were slightly disappointed, but they were understanding.

Once everyone had left the next day, Chase said, “Thank you for being understanding and working with me on this. Love ya.”

“Thank you. Love you too.”

“So, how does Thursday sound for the wedding?”

“Perfect.”

“Thursday it is then.” Chase beamed.

They were waiting to be called back by the clerk; Eric was more nervous now than he was before a game. His knee was bouncing.

Chase placed a hand on Eric’s knee. “You ok? We can skip…”

“Fine. Nervous.” Eric admitted.

“Me too.” Chase said. “It’s just gonna be a few minutes, and then we’ll have that piece of paper though.” He smiled.

“Can we frame it and put it on the wall too, next to the pledge?” Eric teased, chuckling as Chase hit his knee. “I’m kidding.” Eric looked over at Chases and straightened his tie.

“Come on.” Chase said, reaching his hand out to Eric when the clerk called them.

They stood in front of the judge; in a matter of ten minutes, they were walking out with the license. Neither one of them could stop grinning.

“Can I?” Chase asked, holding up his phone.

“Um.”

“It’s cool if you don’t want…” Chase trailed off.

“I think.” Eric stopped. “What about just a picture of our hands and some witty caption?” he settled on.

“I can do that.” Chase knew Eric was extremely private. He’d accept this compromise.

They snapped the pic, and then Chase typed out a comment.  _ Day 1 of forever starts now #JustMarried #Love #MrandMr _ “Whatcha think?”

“You ok with outing yourself?” Eric asked.

“Good point.” Chase said. He changed the last tag to  _ #HappilyEverAfter _ instead.

“Much better.” Eric grinned. “All the important people know anyway.”

“What if someone posts it in the comments?” Chase said. “You know, about us?”

“Well, I guess…” Eric said, stopping. “We don’t have to respond. Let people speculate?”

“Sure.” Chase said. “Or, I could not post it at all. Save us some drama.”

“Go ahead. Post it.” Eric said. “I don’t want my insecurity to hold you back from celebrating this.”

“Eric.” Chase sighed. “We’re a team. We both make decisions together. I know you don’t trust social media. If you don’t want…” Chase stopped talking as Eric grabbed the phone and pressed the send button. “Well, I guess that settles that.” Chase laughed. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Eric said. “But now I’m expecting my husband to make it up to me.” He grinned, watching Chase flush red. “I did something for you; I want you to do something for me.”

“Ok?” Chase asked, voice raw, like sand paper. “And that is?”

“Take me home and show me how much you love me.” Eric said.

It took Chase a second to catch on, but yeah, he was on board. “I can do that.” He grinned, reaching out to grab Eric’s hand. “I love you.”

“Love you too. Now get us home. In one piece.”

“Yes, my dear husband.”

They made it to the doorway; Chase stopped as he turned the key in the lock. “Come here.” He said, turning to Eric.

“What?”

“I’m doing this right. I’m carrying you over the threshold.”

Eric looked at Chase. “One, I’m not a girl. And two, you’ll hurt yourself.”

“I got it. As soon as we cross it, I’m dropping your ass.” Chase laughed. “Let me be the ‘good husband’. Please.”

“Fine.” Eric gave in. He let Chase pick up, open the door, and then carry him into the house. As soon as they had both the door, Chase sat Eric down.

“Welcome home Mr. Comrie.”

“Well, thank you Mr. De Leo.” Eric laughed.

“Now, I believe I have to show someone how much I love them.” Chase said, yanking Eric towards the bedroom.

“Yeah.” Eric said, “But you might want to take care of CJ first. No interruptions.”

“Good point. Give me ten?”

“Yeah.” Eric sat back on the bed, still in awe that they’d actually done this.

When Chase came back, Eric was in his own headspace and zoned out. Chase lightly tapped Eric’s arm. “Hey.”

“Hey.” Eric said back. “I can’t… we really did it.”

“Yes we did.” Chase said. “Now, no more talking.” He said, working on getting Eric’s shirt off. Once that was accomplished, Chase leaned Eric back on the bed, so Chase could have a better angle. He peeled his own shirt off, as well as the rest of the clothes that were separating them, then leaned in to kiss Eric soft and slow.

Eric groaned into the kiss; Chase changed the angle a bit and  _ oh man _ . That one definitely went straight to Eric’s dick, and ripped a moan out of him.

“Patience.” Chase said. He took his time working his way down Eric’s torso, not letting Eric get the friction he wanted (or needed). Once he got to Eric’s dick, he sped things up a little.

“Chase, gonna.” Eric warned; Chase immediately stopped and pulled off.

“Oh no, not yet.” Chase said. “There’s still more.”

“What?” Eric asked, but then there was the telltale click of the lube bottle opening, and a cold finger and his hole.

“Just relax babe. I got you.” Chase said, slowly pressing a finger inside. He took his time, then added a second, crooking them at just the right angle.

“Chase.” Eric said, completely wrecked (but in a good way).

“I know.” Chase pulled his fingers out and then after some quick prep work on himself, repositioned them, so he could get his dick slid in.

“Turn over. On your knees.” Chase said; the other angle with Eric on his back wasn’t gonna work.

Eric obeyed, deliberately sticking his ass up a little higher in the air than he needed to, just to mess with Chase.

Chase gently pushed Eric back to where he needed him to go and then pressed in slowly. Once he had bottomed out (and made sure Eric was still doing ok), he pulled out and then thrust back in, sending them both forward a little with the movement.

It took a few minutes, but they found the right rhythm, Chase shoving in and Eric pulling back.

“Chase.” Eric all but whimpered; Chase immediately picked up on Eric’s tone and reached around to get his hand on Eric’s dick.

“Go on baby. Come for me.” Chase groaned in Eric’s ear; Eric did, covering Chase’s hand and his stomach. Chase used the tightening of the muscles to his advantage, and with a couple more thrusts, he too was coming.

“Um. Wow.” Eric said after a couple minutes.

“Yeah.” Chase said, pulling out as gently as he could. “Happy wedding day sex.” He lazily grinned. “Did I make it up to you?”

“Yes.” Eric said. “You also made a mess.” He pointed to the sheets.

“I’ll do laundry later.” Chase said. “Come on, let me clean us up. We can nap.”

“Laundry.” Eric said.

Chase groaned. He pulled out new bedsheets and quickly switched them out. “Better?”

“For now.” Eric said, following Chase to the bathroom. They cleaned up, and then climbed into bed. “I love you.”

“Love you too.” Chase said, letting Eric get comfortable before he assumed his spot as the little spoon.

When Eric’s hand came to rest on his arm, Chase felt the cool metal of the ring against his hot skin. That was going to take some getting used to. Chase grinned.

“Stop thinking and sleep.” Eric said.

“Yes Mr. Alpha Wave.” Chase teased.

“You’re jelly of my skills.” Eric teased back.

“Sure.” Chase laughed. Meditation wasn’t his thing. But it sure was Eric’s.

Chase fell asleep listening to Eric’s soft breathing behind him. This was nice.

***

The next day at practice, everyone picked up right away on the change of mood in the two of them (and the rings).

“You finally did it?” Blake Wheeler asked. “Well, congrats you two.”

Chase and Eric received congratulation from their team until coach called out, in a teasing manner, “Practice. Save your lovesick crap for home.”

On the ice, it was business as usual; off the ice, well, nothing had changed really.

Eric was going over tape when Chase came up and asked if he was ready to go; Chase ended up having to drag Eric away.

“What do you say we go out tonight for dinner?” Chase asked.

“Too lazy to cook?” Eric chirped.

“Nah, just, I promised…”

“Chase, I know you love me. You don’t have to take me out all the time to prove it.”

“I know.”

“But, no dishes does sound like a great idea.” Eric grinned.

They were midway through the meal when Chase’s phone rang. He picked it up. “Hey. Wait, what? Slow down ma. What? Oh boy.”

“What?” Eric asked as Chase hung up, looking like he’d seen a ghost. “Chase. What’s going on?”

“Um.” Chase said. “Well, you’re not going to like it.”

“Spit it out.”

“So apparently we’re all over the news. You know, with the marriage thing.”

“But.” Eric said. “You only posted the pic…”

“Yeah, but someone ratted us out.” Chase said. “I am so sorry. I know you like your privacy and…” Chase trailed off as Eric grabbed his hand.

“Chase, it’s ok. I’m not happy, sure, but it’s part of life. You really think people weren’t going to find out anyway?”

“Well, true, but…”

“No buts. Let it go. It’s fine.” Eric said; judging by the way he quickly downed the glass of wine, Chase knew it really wasn’t, but he wasn’t willing to pick that fight right now.

“Ok.” Chase settled on; the rest of the meal was eaten in silence, and they went home.

“Can I?” Chase asked, clicking on his Instagram.

“Dude, it’s your social media.” Eric said, and yeah, that tone was back.

Chase scrolled through the comments. There were a few that were negative, sure, but the majority were positive. And hold on… “Eric!”

“What?”

“Come here a minute.”

Chase waited until Eric was sitting by him to read the comments that Nic had posted, basically telling everyone to fuck of and let Chase and Eric live their life in private (well, as private as being a sports star could let you be). There was one from Ty too, pretty much saying the same thing.

“I knew I loved Nic.” Eric said. “Well, after our rocky start that is.”

“Yeah.” Chase laughed. “And your brother’s ok after all.”

“For sure.” Eric laughed.

“I really am sorry though for causing this fiasco.” Chase said.

“Ah, well, it is what it is.” Eric said, but was more relaxed now.

“Do you think it’s time we start planning the family wedding?” Chase asked.

“One problem. Season is about to start, so I think we need to wait for a bit. See what happens with that first. No distractions, remember?”

“Right.”

“But, as soon as camp is over, if there’s some free time, I guess it couldn’t hurt.” Eric said, breaking out into a grin. “You’re not gonna leave me stranded at the altar this time, right?”

“No.” Chase said.

Camp went well, and while they were both sent down to Manitoba again, they couldn’t complain.

As the planning began, Eric looked at Chase. “What do you think about moving Nic down to live with us for a few? He can be the dog sitter and another set of eyes.”

“Um.” Chase thought for a minute. “If you’re cool, and he’s cool with it, ok.”

Nic was there by the end of the week; if Chase didn’t know any better, he could have thought it was just so Eric could learn more about Chase’s secrets that he had confessed to Nic in Portland (mostly involving Eric), but Eric and Nic had really hit it off. It was like the missing puzzle piece had been found.

In the end, the ceremony was short and sweet, and all the things it should have been the first time they had tried to do it. Chase didn’t mess up his vows, but he did start tearing up as he read them to Eric; Eric did the same as he recited his vows.

Since it was the summer, Chase had planned a honeymoon; he had worked with Nic on it (secretly getting Nic to find out some of Eric’s favorite vacation spots), and he wouldn’t tell Eric where they were headed.

“We’re flying on the family jet?” Eric asked.

“Yeah. It’s your parents’ wedding present to us.” Chase said, making Eric laugh.

“Well, where are we heading.”

“You’ll see.” Chase smirked.

After a week in Antigua, they came back to Winnipeg. At this camp, they both cracked the pro roster, where they stayed until opening day.

And they lived happily ever after.


End file.
